news....
August 2007
Inspirational stuff!
We have some great new suppliers including something that will introduce the wow factor to any event – whether it’s a private party or a team conference. How does fire walking sound? Or glass walking? Or board breaking? All of these are great motivators for a business audience and a fabulous, memorable addition to a private function. We just love them and hope you will too – plus they have a 100% safety record! Contact us for more information.
Summer fun – if we ever get one!
We have some great links with a yacht company on the Solent who has a plethora of yachts and a beautiful brand new powerboat – all of which are available to hire with crew and fabulous lunch with champagne. Their prices are really competitive and could be the answer to your client or staff reward trips. Contact us to discuss how this could work for you!
July 2007
‘Tis the season…
…well nearly! With all this miserable weather, you could be forgiven for thinking Christmas was just around the corner; but in event terms, it is. If you would like something other than turkey and tinsel for your staff or clients this year – speak to us. We have some great ideas for original Christmas parties including team games and challenges to whet their appetite, themed parties at unique venues as well as luxury options to spoil everyone! Don’t leave it til the last minute – some hotels and restaurants are booked up already for the most popular dates – this years hot date is 14 December. Let us help you make this a festive season to remember!
Smoking ban
As of July 1st, all indoor venues have implemented the smoking ban. Most places have outdoor spaces which can be used for smokers – some more successful than others. The law states that the structure has to be 50% or more open, so many places who purchased plastic bus top style structures with a roof and three sides, have found that they are not within the letter of the law. Some of the more successful areas we have seen are at the rear of venues, so guests arent walking through a gaggle of smokers – not a great advert for the venue. Any breach in the smoking law will cost the individual a fine (£50 reduced to £30 if paid in 15 days) not to mention the venue itself, which if it is a constant offender, will be ultimately be required to pay £2500. It is the venues responsibility to enforce the ban, however if the event is held in a temporary structure – like a marquee, it is your responsibility (and ours!) to ensure smoking is restricted to outdoor areas.
June 2007
London Fashion Week
For the ultimate in corporate hospitality – how about sending your best clients or staff to London Fashion week? It is running from 15th - 20th September. A truly exclusive event, with over fifty iconic trend-setting designers on the catwalk, 200 designers show casing their Spring/Summer 2008 collection and over 5000 international press and buyers, this sets the scene for a fantastic opportunity to entertain in style. Usually only open to the fashion industry, this would be a real coup for those dedicated to fashion. Tickets will sell out extraordinarily fast – so contact us today for more information.
May 2007
Event Portfolio
In order to maximise your marketing budget and staff motivation budget, planning your events for the forthcoming year is a good idea. This ensures that you are hitting the right markets at the right time to increase leads for new business, looking after current clients and motivating your staff effectively. It is a good idea, to investigate industry specific events where you can exhibit or present to increase awareness of your business. It is also wise to ask your existing clients and staff what they would like to do as a reward and recognition event. Events are far more successful if the attendees feel they have been involved in the process. We can work with you to develop a truly fantastic event portfolio which makes best use of your budget and guarantees a return on your investment.
March 2007
Christmas Parties
No not for 2007; although the earlier you book, the more choice you have… This is about 2006. Some companies leave their Christmas party fashionably late and have still not arranged a company get together. We can arrange a spectacular celebration that will be memorable and welcome, during this quiet social period. The only limits are your imagination!
Fun Stuff
We have found some great new fun stuff to compliment any event. We mentioned axe throwing and ferret racing earlier, there are many other ideas including virtual golf and football games, human table football and much more! Give us a call to give light relief to your next event.
February 2007
International Confex
Co-director of Banshee Events, Tony Quinn was a guest speaker at the event industry’s flagship event, International Confex on 22 February. The event is held over three days at London’s Earls Court and the great and the good from the events industry move heaven and earth to be there. Tony’s seminar was on Engaging your Audience and he was supported by a Customer Advocate in the shape of Andy Reeve from Business Link – one of our best clients. A pod cast will be available in the next couple of months and when it is, we will send a link to it so you can hear it for yourselves.
Team Charter
One of the things we are working on with a number of our clients is what we call a team charter. This is an agreement between everyone on the team to work within some friendly guidelines. These are outside of processes and procedures and are more about how we would like to be treated and will treat others. Every team charter is different, as every member of the team works together to draw up something that everyone agrees with and can work to. Our clients who use a team charter have found it very useful in removing the barriers between teams and have also found it has helped to prevent some reactions and comments being taken personally, through having clear understanding of intentions.
Being hospitable
How would you like to do something a bit different for your clients? Every year, many companies spend a lot of money on a day at a sporting event or similar pre-organised event where they get their clients together to talk shop and build relationships. These can be very expensive and do not necessarily match your brand image and values. Why not provide a personalised day for your clients that better reflects who your business is and what it stands for? We are working with some of our clients on specially designed days that exactly meet their objectives. One example is a ride and drive day set at a beautiful country house location. The guests will be able to drive a selection of cars throughout the day as well as take part in some country pursuits – some well known and some more unusual – like axe throwing or ferret racing! All this, and some fabulous food and drink will be supplied. Our client sees this as a better way of getting their clients together and better represents the way their company likes to do business. Talk to us for a personalised hospitality plan for you.
January 2007
Spring Clean Your Team
Our January newsletter was dedicated to spring cleaning your team. It was great to speak to some of you about putting a programme together. Banshee Events provides structured team development to improve your teams relationships and communication skills. If your team understand each other and communicate effectively, your working environment will be more happy and productive. Our development programmes can be anything from a couple of hours to a week-long intensive course. Above all, learning should be fun and Banshee days are always that!
Click here for some comments from satisfied customers…
Cut through the information clutter
The undeniable effectiveness of face-to-face interaction is increasingly attractive to companies looking to cut through the information clutter. This is one of the findings of the EventView 2006 survey. People take on information through three main avenues - audio, visual and kinaesthetic. The face to face event meets all three of these better than the written word. All that is left to decide is what your objectives are and who your audience is. Then let us take the strain and give your audience the most experiential event they have ever attended.
December 2006
Open Day
STOP PRESS! Banshee are preparing to hold an open day in early June… we think the best way of getting across how beneficial team development can be, is to show you. So, we are planning a day at a venue near Salisbury, where we can show you what we can do and you can have a go at some of the challenges. It will be a great fun day with some refreshments included. More info to follow!
November 2006
Colour Works…
Have you thought about your teams’ personalities? Are they sociable, persuasive and expressive? Or caring, patient and amiable? Or competitive, determined and strong willed? Or cautious, analytical and precise? There are four main categories that peoples work personas fall into and the best teams have a good mixture of all types. Each persona can be represented by a colour. We have an expert who can establish what personality types your team have and then work with them to help them work better together. Combine this process with some fun challenges to illustrate their differences and you have a great team! Give us a call to discuss how this approach could help you and your teams.
Destination management…
Banshee Events has some fab links with foreign countries. Countries include Dubai; France; Spain; Holland; Barbados as well as places all over the UK. Why not reward your star players with a trip or incentivise your sales team to perform better than ever? Contact us for a wealth of ideas. Click on this link for more ideas - http://www.bansheeevents.com/recognition.htm
Your own beautiful cocktails…
How would you like to wow your friends or colleagues with your own bespoke cocktail party? We have discovered the most amazing mobile cocktail bar and bar tenders who can create the perfect cocktail menu for your event. Whether it’s a twist on the classics – like Coriander Mojito’s or a completely new flavour – like Blueberry Capirkoska; they can provide the best cocktails using the world finest liquor. Contact us for more information and a sample menu.
October 2006
‘Twas the night before Christmas…
… well nearly! It’s less than nine weeks until the big day! However, it’s not too late to book your Christmas party! We have some fabulous ideas, which we are only too pleased to help you with. Our clients are holding a wide range of different events including an away day with a manhunt and some laser clay pigeon shooting followed by a fabulous lunch and party games. Plus we are also helping with a fully dressed, all singing and dancing party for 2000 people including a snow machine, triple chocolate fountain and hand painted draping to create a winter wonderland in a basic conference space. We have also got access to the fabulous Champagne Lounge in Covent Garden who have a few exclusive dates left. Click here for more inspiration.
Natty Gizmo…
We have found a terrific new marketing or communication device. It is a sprung box which folds flat and goes in a wallet and when the wallet is opened, the box springs out displaying your message and surprising the recipient! A fantastically novel idea for Christmas cards; to promote your business or as an original invitation to an upcoming event. Contact us for a photo or a sample.
September 2006
Journeyman
We have discovered a fantastic new board game designed for teams and companies who have a burning question they would like to answer using the whole team and some out of the box thinking. The game is a unique, patented tool to encourage the team to think about a particular question with fresh eyes and from a different angle. Having played the game, I can vouch that it is extremely powerful and could genuinely change the way you run your team or business. You will certainly adjust your original question as you progress through the game, as what is important comes to the fore. It can be played over a couple of hours to a half day or full day session and is facilitated to ensure the group gets the most from the game. Be one of the first teams to experience a new phenomenon!
We have developed some new team challenges to get the most from your team away day.
Two of our favourites are
Manhunt
This is a great way of developing your teams’ relationship their communication skills and their mental agility. A series of clues and challenges lead the team ultimately to a person who has some information to gain the team a reward.
They will engage with the local population, using walkie-talkies, mobile phones, the Internet and in some cases vehicles to meet the objectives.
Director for a day!
One of our favourites is a film making challenge where we supply all the cameras, editing equipment and expert training for the team to make a film about any given subject. This activity works well for product development and perception altering workshops or just for fun. The day ends with the group having an Oscar style ceremony and dinner and watching each other’s films.
August 2006
And now for something completely different!
We not so different really… Christmas cards. We can recommend a novel, reasonably priced way to stay in contact with your clients and key suppliers at Christmas. Send a Christmas Bauble to everyone! The baubles can be created in any colour and finish with your logo or message printed on the bauble. These are a fantastic idea and very different and certain to get your company noticed. Also if you have a company Christmas tree or display at your premises, these make a great personalised addition to your display – I guarantee your clients will want one when they come into your premises!
Put some light on the situation
We have found some amazing interactive lights that are used outside. They are Chinese Lanterns – a paper lantern which when lit, floats away into the sky and can create a great display without the cost of fireworks, with the added advantage that the audience have released the lanterns to create the display. We have incorporated them into one of our team development challenges as well as providing them for an added after dinner touch at Christmas parties.
July 2006
Christmas Parties! Now is the time to think about your Christmas party. All the best venues get booked up quickly! If you like to celebrate Christmas in style this year, we can design a bespoke party for you that exceeds yours and your guests expectations and ensures that Christmas 2006 goes down as the best Christmas ever!
Wow! This has been our busiest month ever. We have been helping loads of team work better together - some with a serious business focus and others purely for fun. We are also into planning for Christmas parties with this years hot theme of Cuba playing a large part in a lot of parties.
New team member. Meet Jo - she is our summer work experience star who is working hard designing events, marketing Banshee and generally helping us in our busiest period. Jo is off to Uni in September to study an event management degree for 3 years but will be back in her holidays to keep on gaining experience in the industry.
June 2006
Team Development Funding There is a variety of funding available to develop your leaders or teams which many of our clients have taken advantage of. Using our in house experts we can get the best from your team so you can see the stars emerge and get them firing on all four cylinders - all aiming for the same goal.
Dubai We have made some fabulous contacts in Dubai so we can arrange a great trip to reward your team or for a conference with a difference or indeed a private trip for you. Highlights include camping out under the stars in the desert, skiing (yes skiing) in 35 degree heat and luxury accommodation like nowhere else in the world. Give us a call to discuss the ultimate trip.
May 2006
Monaco 2007 How would you like to be amongst the stars, champagne in hand watching the most exciting motor race of the year in ultimate luxury? Contact us for details of your visit to the Monaco Grand Prix in 2007 - book early to get the best seats in town.
April 2006
Cuba Libre! Fancy hand folling some cigars, dancing the Samba to a live band and sipping Cuba Libres? Sounds like the perfect evening to me! Why not have your next event themed around this years hottest theme?
March 2006
We have access to some fabulous exclusive hospitality at the Monaco Grand Prix in May 06. If you would like to arrange the ultimate weekend for you and your friends or for your employees or customers, give us a call to discuss your needs. This is truly one weekend not to be missed!
On Thursday 2 March we are at the Business South Exhibition at St Marys Stadium, Southampton. We aren't exhibiting this time but we are taking part in the 'Meet the Buyer' sessions. If you are there and fancy a chat and a coffee, please give us a call on 07841 024240 - we'd love to meet you!
It is a busy time for team development at the moment. We are currently putting together a great new Leadership and Communications Programme for existing managers along with training experts, Gateway Training. This can be run as a personalised session for one company or as a group session with people from differing companies. We plan to start them at the end of the month. For more information please contact the Banshee Office.
February 2006
Wow! What a busy month! We have been rushing around like quite the busy bees! Firstly we had a huge success when we hosted the first Salisbury Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting. They wanted something different and memorable and we certainly delivered that! Everyone who attended agreed that it was the most productive networking session they had been to plus it set them up beautifully for the work day ahead. The next one is planned for the 11 April at 7.30am at the Coach and Horses pub on Winchester St, Salisbury - why not come along? Contact the Chamber of Commerce for more details.
We have also been working closely with a fabulous new venue between Yeovil and Dorchester - it's a Grade II listed manor house with fantastic grounds and the most dedicated staff. If you or your clients need somewhere new and different to hold that meeting or special event, this is the place. Give us a call to find out the details.
We have also been talking about weddings a lot this month. More and more people want something out of the ordinary for their big day; like stilt walkers scattering confetti for example! Add that to the hectic schedules most of us are running to, and an event management company could be your saving grace! Contact us...
January 2006
Happy New Year! We promised details of our 2006 Challenge - its called "National Treasures and Heroes 2006." More details can be found by clicking on the link below.
click here - National Treasures and Heroes 2006
We have also put together the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce and Industry's annual events schedule for 2006, based on the responses received from the member survey we carried out last year. There are over 30 events planned for the year, from business lunches to go-karting! Contact the Chamber of Commerce for more details.
December 2005
Banshee have had an article about the benefits of team building for all companies - no matter what size, published in a fab new events magazine called The Main Event. We are on page 25 if you have a copy!
November 2005
We are staging our own amazing weekend challenge in 2006. Full details will be available very shortly but we can tell you it's going to be fab! Anyone can take part - you need to be in teams of 4 in a vehicle, so have a think about who would be in your team.
October 2005
Banshee was included in 'The Events Bible' supplied to the 15 teams taking part in the Alan Sugar Challenge in aid of the Hackney Empire.
September 2005
We exhibited at the South Wiltshire Business EXPO which was a roaring success for all involved. Tessa Sanderson was the key speaker at the launch party. Banshee Events recorded a radio interview for air on Spire FM - very nerve-wracking! This is us looking shell shocked!
July 2005
We have been awarded Bronze Patronage of the Salisbury Chamber of Commerce for a range of event services we have provided to the Executive Officer including a member survey. We are also helping them to plan the next 12 months events and assist in the organisation of them.
June 2005
We have developed a new product - Company Documentaries. A fabulous way of showing how your company has become what it is today. This is great to use for marketing and to show your grand-children!